Soon after Amy and I were married we needed groceries. We lived in Wilmore, Kentucky where Amy was completing her college education while I finished my Master’s Degree. We were just back from our honeymoon and realized we had no food in our small apartment.
We had little money so decided to only purchase what we absolutely needed. With that determination we walked to our local grocery store, Fitch’s IGA. When we entered the store, we were warmly greeted by the owner, Leonard Fitch. We bought milk, bread, and a can of tuna and walked home.
Recently I was reading a book about psychogeography, a study of the effects of living in a particular location, when I was startled to see a reference to a man named Jay Leeson. Jay had moved to Wilmore, Kentucky from Texas in the early 2010’s to study Christian ministry at Asbury Theological Seminary. He was married with twins and a 20-month-old child and, in his words, “barely treading water”.
In his story, Jay tells of visiting the town’s only grocery store. He said he was depressed as he entered the store and selected his items. As he checked out the man at the register asked him how he was doing. Jay said he mumbled a reply and the man said again, “how are you really doing?” Jay was suddenly overwhelmed by the man’s kindness and concern. That man was Leonard Fitch.
At that time Leonard was recovering from hip replacement surgery and his wife Emily was battling stage 4 cancer. The couple had already used $700,000 of their savings to keep the store open. When Jay later asked him why, Leonard simply answered that the town needed the store. That’s when Jay realized that Leonard and his wife felt called of God to help their community through their grocery store.
Leonard Fitch still runs Fitch’s IGA. He still asks people how they’re doing (and means it). I spoke with him myself last week (he asked how I was doing). He has meaningfully (and successfully) ministered to thousands of people because he has “a giving heart”.
God can do great things through you when you have a giving heart.
The Bible says in Luke 6:38, “Give and it will be given to you…” NIV
